Skunks emit a very strong and undesirable odor. These animals spray to keep predators away, this spray is offensive to humans as well.
If you’re suddenly smelling skunk in your bathroom, you’d be right to worry. But is this smell coming from a skunk or something else entirely? This article looks into it.
Bathroom smells like skunk:
It’s a skunk:
Skunks living close to humans has become more and more commonplace. If your bathroom smells like skunk, then you may very well have a skunk living, and spraying, close to your bathroom or under it.
Skunks burrow under homes and create enclosed spaces to nest in. If you live in a house, check your garden for holes large enough for skunks to crawl into.
What to do:
Getting rid of skunks can be quite tricky. Finding a skunk den can be even more difficult because they create dens in secluded areas. The entrances to their dens are also quite small.
The best thing to do in this case is to contact your local wildlife removal professionals and get them to remove the animal from your premises.
Dead skunk in wall:
Skunks almost always spray when they die, whether they die a natural or an unnatural death.
If a skunk gets into your bathroom wall and dies, then what you may be smelling is the spray that the skunk released when it died.
If left unattended, skunk spray can last up to three weeks and the skunk’s decomposing body will start to smell as well.
What to do:
Finding and removing the skunk from your wall can be a mission, if you’re having trouble doing this, then you’d need to contact and hire a professional wildlife removal technician.
These professionals will find the skunk, cut a hole in your wall, get rid of the smell by neutralizing it, and then close up and replaster your wall once done.
Sewer gas:
If your bathroom smells like skunk then you may have a leak in your bathroom from a broken toilet seal, a cracked pipe, a blocked air vent, a clogged drain, dry plumbing, loosely fitted toilets, or an unused drain pipe.
A skunk-smelling gas, that is created in your plumbing when human waste breaks down, will be released if you have a leak in your bathroom.
The gas that is released is a mix of a variety of gasses including ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and other gasses. The hydrogen sulfide will make your bathroom smell like skunk.
What to do:
Some of the gasses released when you have a sewer gas leak can be toxic to humans. If you’re exposed to small amounts of these gasses this won’t do you much harm, but these gasses can be harmful in large amounts.
If you think that this is what is causing your bathroom to smell like skunk then you’d need to contact a plumber to do a house call as soon as possible.
Your plumber will look for any issues with your plumbing and fix them, fixing your plumbing will get rid of the skunk smell in your bathroom.
Propane:
Propane is odorless, a harmless addition called mercaptan is added to the gas to make it detectable should the gas leak. This makes the gas smell like skunk when released.
If you’re using this natural gas somewhere near your bathroom, and it’s leaking, the smell may waft into your bathroom and make the bathroom smell like skunk.
What to do:
Start off by shutting off the main gas valve in your home, this valve can be found on your gas meter which’s usually at the front of your home or on the side.
Call your gas provider to confirm that this is the best thing to do in your case. If they agree, you can shut off the gas.
Have someone from your gas company come to your house and assess the situation. They will get rid of the leak as well as the smell.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, there are various reasons why your bathroom smells like skunk, there may be a spraying skunk living under your bathroom, there may be a skunk in your walls, you may have a sewer leak or you may have a natural gas leak.
Whatever the reason, you’d need to tend to the issue as quickly as you can
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other skunk related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Natural Ways To Get Rid Of Skunk Smell On A Dog, Smells Like Skunk In Apartment, Why Do Skunks Spray Under The House?
